Well, it looks like the T-Mobile G1 / HTC Dream has just dropped to $129.99 USD on a 2-year contract. There's really not much left to say here, but T-Mobile did increase the price on a few Samsung handsets, which is surprising. You can check out the new T-Mobile G1 price on T-Mobile's website here.

Orange UK has just officially announced that they will be launching the Motorola DEXT for free on a 2-year contract. Of course, you'll have to sign up for a contract in which you'll have to fork over at least £34.26 ($57 USD) a month. We still don't know exactly when it will launch, but it should be pretty soon.

It looks like Rogers is now shipping the BlackBerry Curve 8520 "literature" now, so that could mean that its launch could be just around the corner. I'm thinking that it will launch sometime next month, since the BlackBerry Bold 9700 (Bold 2) should be on track for a launch in November on Rogers.

What you see above appears to be an Uncharted 2 bundle box and the 250GB PS3 Slim looks like it will be included in the box. We've seen the 250GB model pass the FCC already, so this won't be all that surprising. Let's just hope that Sony will decide to release a Modern Warfare 2 bundle with a 250GB PS3 Slim model too, kind of like what Microsoft is planning to do with the Xbox 360.

According to this video below, the HTC Leo / Firestone will have a multi-touchscreen display. Now, this is obviously unconfirmed since I'm pretty sure we were unaware that Windows Mobile 6.5 will have multi-touchscreen capabilities, but hey, it'll be great if it does. Take a look at the ever-so-exciting video below.

Yesterday we heard about an upcoming music-oriented handset that Sony Ericsson is supposed to announced on September 21st. Well, according to the latest rumour, the handset will actually be an instant-on handset, which I don't think will be all that exciting. I guess it'll be like a PMP phone kind of handset. It'll turn on right away so that it will let you listen to your music.

According to the latest rumour, the godly Android-based Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3 will be launching in January of 2010. There's not much else to say, but we'll likely see this after the XPERIA X2 gets launched. So, start saving your money now.

Last week we saw the new Palm App Catalog that should be released soon. Well, now we're hearing that the new App Catalog will actually be launching on September 24th, so it's only 8 days away! In addition to that news, we're also hearing that WebOS 1.2 will also be coming next week. It looks like next week is shaping up to be a great week for Palm Pre users. I'll keep you posted.

In July, Cell Passion got the scoop on the upcoming LG GW825. Well, Cell Passion is still working hard and has just found that the LG Milan will, in fact, be the GW825 from LG. It has just been spotted at the WiFi Alliance with: a 480 x 800 resolution touchscreen display, UMTS / WiFi connectivity, possibly a 2MP camera, and it's running Windows Mobile. I really hope LG doesn't put that nice looking screen to waste.

Just like we heard yesterday, the Nokia 5130 XpressMusic is now available on T-Mobile. This handset is running S40 and has: a 2MP camera, Stereo Bluetooth, an FM radio, and a microSD card slot. It's available in two colours: pearl white / aqua (above) and also in black / red (below). This handset is now available for $29.99 USD after a $20 mail-in rebate on a 2-year contract. Check it out online here.

The title basically says most of what I'm going to talk about. We're hearing that the Samsung Instinct HD will be launching on Sprint on September 27th for somewhere between $99 and $149 USD on a 2-year contract. The September 27th date has been spotted before, so it's the unofficial release date right now. In related news, we still don't know what's "HD" about this handset.

The Asus Eee PC 1005HAG is set to launch in Japan very soon. The 1005HAG is going to launch on September 19th - which is just 3 days away - and it will have 3G connectivity to accompany your 10.1-inch display. It'll be launching for 52,800 yen ($584 USD) which is around $50 more than without the integrated 3G.

VIA has just unveiled their future ultraportable design, called the NetNote. Using their own VIA Surfboard platform, they will be creating netbooks and mini-notebooks with Full HD capability. These netbook / mini-notebooks will be available with 10 to 12.1-inch screen sized and could have things like: an HDMI port, integrated 3G connectivity, an FM transmitter, a digital TV receiver. Next week they'll be showing off the VIA NetNote Turnkey Solution, so look out for it.

Last week we heard about the S740 Series Walkman (right) and now we're also hearing about the S640 Series Walkman (left) as well. Both of these Walkmans have: a 2-inch display, a TV output, and a battery long enough to last 42 hours of audio / 10 hours of video playback. The main difference between these two Walkmans is that the S740 Series has built-in noise cancellation.

The S640 Series will be available in 8GB and 16GB models and will launch for 14,000 yen ($154 USD) and 17,000 yen ($187 USD), respectively; there will be a speaker bundle going for 17,000 yen ($187 USD) and 20,000 yen ($220 USD), respectively. The S740 Series will be available in black, gold, green, and violet colour. They will be available in 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB models and will retail for 16,000 yen (176 USD), 19,000 yen ($209 USD) and 25,000 yen (274 USD), respectively; the speaker bundle will be available for (8GB model) 19,000 yen ($209 USD) and (16GB model) 22,000 yen ($241 USD), respectively.

For both of these models, the 8GB variant will be available on October 10th and the larger variants will be available on October 28th in Japan.

We've heard about the Essex and the Curve 8530, but what's the Striker 9100? Well, first off, the BlackBerry Essex is basically the Tour with WiFi, a trackpad, and has another feature that we will apparently love. The BlackBerry Curve 8530 is just a CDMA version of the BlackBerry Curve 8520, it's headed to Verizon in the near future. The BlackBerry Striker 9100 appears to be a slimmer BlackBerry Bold 9700 that has 3G connectivity and an optical trackpad. We still don't know when any of these smartphones will launch.

In related news, a source has mentioned that RIM is working on getting out 16 new smartphones in 2010!

Although the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2 hit Expansys sometime last week, the price seemed to be a bit high. Sony Ericsson has apparently confirmed that the XPERIA X2 will be launching for somewhere between 590 euros ($865 USD) and 600 euros ($880 USD) when it launches in Europe in a couple of months. The XPERIA X2 is definitely in the running to be one of the best WinMo phones to date and could possibly be the last WinMo handset that Sony Ericsson ever makes.

Don't quote me here but I believe that these new NW-A840 Series Walkmans are the same as the S740 Series Walkmans we heard about last week - they look really similar. These new Walkmans will be available in two colours: black and brown. These Walkmans have: a 2.8-inch OLED display, a 7.2mm thin body, an FM radio, 16GB / 32GB / 64GB of internal storage, a TV output, and a battery life that should last 29 hours of audio / 9 hours of video playback.

The A Series Walkmans unfortunately do now have WiFi support, so that's a let down. These new players are expected to launch on Halloween this year - October 31st - for ¥24,000 ($263 USD), ¥30,000 ($329 USD), and ¥40,000 ($439 USD), respectively.

Update: Looks like these aren't the S740 Series Walkmans. Those seem to be a smaller model to these Walkmans and they were just officially unveiled.

It looks like Lenovo is planning to release two new notebooks with touchscreen displays soon. The X200 will be a convertible notebook with: a 12-inch capacitive touchscreen display, an Intel Core 2 Duo 2.13GHz CPU, and up to a 500GB HDD / 256GB SSD. Lenovo has also updated their ThinkPad T400s. This should be the more desirable of the two since it has a larger 14.1-inch four-finger multi-touchscreen display. Lenovo's "SimpleTap" will be available on October 22nd and it will give you easy access to "common functions" like WiFi, brightness, and volume controls.

The ThinkPad X200 and T400s will be retailing for $1,729 and $1,999, respectively, when they launch on October 22nd with Windows 7. Check out what Lenovo had to say below. By the way, you can check out what Engadget thought about the ThinkPad T400s notebook tablet - they also have a video available.

Lenovo Adds Touch of Simplicity to New MultiTouch Screen ThinkPad PCs

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC – September 15, 2009: Lenovo today is bringing business users a new way to work with multitouch screen technology1 on the versatile and portable ThinkPad X200 Tablet PC and slim and powerful ThinkPad T400s laptop. Lenovo is also introducing SimpleTap, an application that brings simplicity to the multitouch screen experience.

"We see now as the right time for multitouch screens on PCs," said Sam Dusi, vice president, worldwide ThinkPad product marketing, Lenovo. "With touch screens increasingly becoming part of more devices we use routinely and continued improvement of the technology including the integration of touch in the upcoming Windows 7 operating system, the environment for making touch part of our Tablet PC and ThinkPad T400s laptop experience couldn't be better. We've also extended the touch experience with SimpleTap to make frequent hardware-based functions touch-enabled and simple."

Lenovo also today announced a new defense against the sun for outdoor workers with a new super bright optional screen on the ThinkPad X200 Tablet.

Personalizing Productivity on the PC with Touch

Users can now interact with their ThinkPad PC in a more personal way with multitouch screen technology. Designed for highly mobile users, the optional multitouch screen ThinkPad X200 Tablet caters to individuals in fields such as sales, health care and education. Already supporting one finger touch, these users can now use two-finger touch to perform a variety of gestures, including pinching, zooming, tapping and flicking through documents, web pages and photos instead of using a mouse.

The high performance ThinkPad T400s laptop serves professionals in engineering and design. Now these users can manipulate four fingers on the ThinkPad T400s laptop's optional multitouch screen to not only replace the mouse but transform the way they work. They can now use four fingers to manipulate objects, move images with two hands and even have another person touch the screen to collaborate simultaneously. As new multitouch applications are introduced, there will be new possibilities for using multitouch screen laptops.

Using advanced capacitive touch, the screens are sensitive and responsive to even the slightest touch of the finger. Lenovo also optimized the firmware to help compensate for slightly imprecise taps on the screen, such as when closing a window or navigating the Start menu, helping make navigation easier for Tablet users. To combat fingerprints, an anti-fingerprint coating helps keep smudges at bay and the screen clean. The multi-touch screens also allow users to enjoy ultra long battery life with up to nine hours on the ThinkPad X200 Tablet.2

With upcoming ThinkPad X200 Tablet models supporting the Microsoft Windows 7 operating system, these mobile users can also take advantage of improved predictive text over previous operating systems, improved handwriting recognition in more languages and formula input features for math and scientific equations.

More details on the ThinkPad T400s and X200 Tablet are available at www.lenovo.com.

Adding a "Touch" of Simplicity to Touch Screens

Touch screens are designed to make interaction with a PC natural and intuitive, however, often users must switch between touch screen gestures and pressing hardware buttons. Lenovo designed SimpleTap, a ThinkVantage Technology, to enable uninterrupted use of people's touch screens by giving them access to hardware-based functions that may be more easily accessed via touch input. For Tablet users, that means staying in tablet mode longer while on-the-go, saving time and being more productive.

To use SimpleTap, simply double tap anywhere on the screen to launch the application. A clean and efficient grid of colorful and transparent square tiles, inspired by the classic 15 Puzzle, opens on top of the work beneath and allows users to choose several hardware-based functions including: turning on or off the wireless radio, ThinkLight and microphone, previewing the camera, enabling mute, adjusting the volume or screen brightness, locking the screen or putting the PC to sleep. To exit SimpleTap, just tap once anywhere on the screen to close the grid and continue working. As a quick access interface, SimpleTap allows users to get in, perform a function and get out quickly.

Designed to be highly customizable, individuals can create their own tiles to enhance their personal productivity. For example, a sales professional could create a tile that launches a sales presentation with just the tap of a finger. A health professional could similarly create a tile that pulls up a patient's medical information instantaneously. Or a consumer could quickly access his or her favorite website. Users can arrange the tiles however they choose by dragging and grouping them together, and designed to be fun to use, the tiles can even be flicked around the screen.

Click here to see a video demonstration of SimpleTap and here to read more about the design and inspiration behind the application.

Brightening Tablet PC for Outdoor Light

To further extend tablet computing outdoors, users can now choose a super bright outdoor screen that displays images even in direct sunlight. For field engineers, sales professionals, students and others who work outside, outdoor viewability is critical. The new optional outdoor screen on the ThinkPad X200 Tablet offers excellent viewability with a bright 400 nit screen, low 1.2 percent reflectivity and wide viewing angle. Coated with a thin anti-reflective layer, the screen provides crisp and bright images that can easily be seen indoors or outdoors. Mobile workers can also stay productive with the Tablet's all day battery life.

A photo of the ThinkPad X200 outdoor screen compared with a standard screen can be viewed here.

Pricing and Availability3

The ThinkPad T400s with the multitouch screen and the ThinkPad X200 Tablet with the multitouch screen and the outdoor screen will be available starting immediately through business partners and www.lenovo.com. Pricing starts at approximately $1,999 for the ThinkPad T400s with the multitouch screen and $1,654 and $1,704, respectively, for the ThinkPad X200 Tablet with the multitouch screen and outdoor screen. SimpleTap will be available for download after October 22.

This may not be an accurate picture, but we've already heard about possible iMac refreshes. W'eve heard about a possible Blu-ray drive and a 24-inch LED Cinema display. Below is what Wedge Partners thinks.

Wedge sees a redesigned iMac witjh a “thinner, organic design, likely with smoothed or rounded edges. The MacBook redesign “is likely to be limited,” Wedge asserts. Meanwhile, the firm also expects “new, lower price points to drive demand and create a meaningful competitive threat” to coming PCs based on Windows 7 as well as to the booming netbook segment. “We believe these new designs and price points will help Apple achieve a 3 million unit quarter for Macs in [calendar] Q4.”

As you can barely see in the photo above, it leaks that T-Mobile will have the Android-based Motorola CLIQ up for pre-orders starting on October 19th. It looks like this handset will really be hitting the US in November, which is just under two months away! Don't forget social integration with MOTOBLUR!

According to Sanjay Jha, Motorola's Co-CEO, they are going to attempt to sell the Motorola CLIQ on all of the big phone carriers across the US. So, this means you'll be able to scoop up the CLIQ on any carrier you want: T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon or AT&T - that is, if this happens. Hey, I hope they don't forget about us up here in Canada.

In related news, the Motorola DEXT will be launching as early as next month on Orange UK for free on a contract.

Just for safe measure, Apple has quickly dropped the price of their 3rd-Generation 32GB iPod Touch to $279.99 USD - check it on Amazon here. They likely did this because of Microsoft's Zune HD PMP, which costs $289.97 on Amazon. Surprisingly enough, they also cut $10 off their 8GB model, so now it's just $189.99 on Amazon and the 64GB 3rd-Generation iPod Touch is still $399 on Amazon. Apple is definitely taking a safe measure here, even though they'll still win the PMP war either way.

According to the Zune HD's own manuals and documentation, you'll be able to use a composite A/V cable that is included (HDMI is also included) in the box for those "other touch-screen Zune players." The thing is that their are no other touch-screen Zune players, so this could be a sign of the future. Engadget points out that it could have been a mistake on their part, but really, the touchscreen is the future.

Microsoft has just confirmed that a new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 bundle will be released when the game launches. This new Xbox 360 will be black and will have a 250GB HDD inside. It'll also be retailing for $399 USD. Unfortunately, the night vision goggles will be sold separately.

On a side note, maybe Sony is planning to do the same thing with their rumoured 250GB HDD PS3 Slim model.